MADINA: The dispute between the family of Zainab, the Saudi-born American citizen who committed suicide in Madina, and her ex-husband has taken a new twist. According to the former husband, Zainab was looking for a way to escape from the confinement her family imposed on her following her divorce and did not intend to commit suicide. Authorities are still holding the woman's body in the General Hospital morgue some two weeks after her death. The woman's ex-husband defended himself against charges by her family that he caused the deterioration of her mental health, which led to her committing suicide by jumping from a building in the Al-Harra Al-Sharqiah District. Speaking to Okaz/Saudi Gazette, the man identified only as M. Sh., said he was sure his ex-wife was trying to escape from confinement after she was barred from leaving the house. The woman was born in the Kingdom, got married, separated from her husband and obtained American citizenship, officials said. The former husband stressed that Zainab did not commit suicide because she was a strong believer in Almighty Allah and had memorized the Holy Qur'an. The ex-husband did not hide his regret for separating from the mother of his two daughters. He said he made the tough decision after her condition deteriorated during recent months following seven years of a quiet and stable life. He accused her father of interfering in her life. Okaz/Saudi Gazette confronted M. Sh. with her family's accusations, including a contention that he pointed a gun at her, but he denied that charge. He acknowledged that he beat her twice after she burned his clothes. In response to accusations by the dead woman's brothers that he kept their sister and his second wife in the same house, M. Sh. denied this and said each wife had a separate house. He stressed that his ex-wife was still attached to him till her death. She was repeating his name and asked to see him before falling from the window, officials have said. A team of investigators, Criminal Investigations Department men, a forensic doctor and a representative from the Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution examined the scene, collected evidence and investigated the incident, a police spokesman has said M. Sh., who spoke to Okaz/Saudi Gazette from his residence in Al-Qassim, expressed deep concern that his ex-wife's body remained at the morgue two weeks after her death. He said he would come to Madina to try to get the burial procedures completed soon. M. Sh. accused the woman's father of exerting pressure on her, which caused disputes in their marital life and caused her psychiatric problems. “I tried to get her treated, but the pressures from her family and her spontaneous actions caused me to divorce her,” he said. According to the ex-husband, security authorities summoned the father to complete procedures for the burial, but he did not show up. Also, the father authorized his eldest son to act on his behalf. But the son left for abroad thus causing the burial to be delayed further, the ex-husband said. Addressing the family's refusal to let him take care of his two daughters, M. Sh. said he has started procedures for receiving the girls, in preparation for taking them to live with him in Al-Qassim. “Let a court decide who should take care of the two girls,” he added.
